HAYLEE DONATHAN - 3 yo - Crestline OH

VALLEY CENTER,
Calif. — A 4-year-old Ohio girl, who had disappeared with her mother
and a wanted sex offender, was found Tuesday at a Christian retreat
center near San Diego.
The nationwide search for Haylee Donathan ended when authorities discovered
her unharmed with the fugitives at the Morning Star Ranch in Valley
Center, Calif., the San Diego Union-Tribune said. Deputies had followed a tip from the ranch’s residents.
U.S. deputies arrested the girl’s mother, Candace Watson, 24, and Watson’s boyfriend, sex offender Robbie Potter, 27.
Until the disappearance, Potter had been living at a halfway house in Ohio,
after his release from prison for sexual battery on a minor, the U.S.
Marshal Service told the Union-Tribune. He was prohibited from
interaction with children.
A resident from Morning Star recognized the missing girl Tuesday from a billboard in
the Los Angeles area. He verified the information with the ranch’s
manager, who then called the authorities.
Deputy U.S. Marshal Omar Castillo told the Union-Tribune that the family had
been at the ranch for a week. Haylee will now be placed in the care of
her grandmother.

VALLEY CENTER — A 4-year-old Ohio girl
who was the subject of a nationwide search was found safe at a
Christian organic farm in Valley Center on Tuesday and her mother and
the mother's boyfriend were arrested, authorities said.
A recent resident of the Morning Star Ranch spotted an
Amber Alert sign in Las Vegas and realized it was the three people who
had been living at the ranch for about a week, helping out in the
communal setting.
Sheriff's deputies, acting on the tip, arrested wanted
sex offender Robbi Potter, 27, and his girlfriend, Candace Watson, 24,
about 3 p.m. at the retreat on Keys Creek Road, authorities said.
The couple had been on the run with Watson's daughter, Haylee Donathan, for a month.

Kevin Carlin, 53, who has lived at the ranch for six years, said the
three showed up at the avocado, grapefruit and persimmon farm about a
week ago. The well-kept farm consists of several buildings, including a
main house, fruit groves, a large garden and a pen where goats and
other animals are kept.
“We don't do background checks,” Carlin said. “We
welcomed Robbi and Candace and Haylee. They told us they were from
Ohio, but we don't watch television. We didn't know CNN was doing a
nightly thing on them.”
The three were given a room on the second floor of the main house.

Carlin said Watson helped out in the kitchen and Potter worked in the avocado groves.

“You can say in retrospect they were on their best behavior. They
didn't act strange or threatening in any way. ... They were pretty
normal people,” Carlin said. “They didn't seem like a perfectly happy
couple, but a lot of young couples have problems.”
Carlin said someone who had stayed at the ranch recently
was driving east when he saw an Amber Alert sign while passing through
Las Vegas that showed a picture of the pickup in which the family was
traveling and the truck's license plate number.
He called the ranch, and Carlin and others confirmed it was the same vehicle.

“At that point we called the sheriff. They came quickly,” Carlin said.

Deputies gathered near the entrance of the ranch and then decided they
needed reinforcements because they had information that Potter might be
violent.
Carlin said the deputies “came with plenty of force.”

“There was a helicopter up overhead. It was definitely tense,” he said.

Carlin said he and others quietly emptied the house, moving residents to another building on the other side of the compound.

“We just wanted to get people out of the way,” he said.

The arrests were uneventful. “They surrendered and were handcuffed and were marched out,” he said.

According to the U.S. Marshals Service, Potter had recently been
released from prison after serving time for sexual battery on a minor
and was not allowed to be around children.
He was living at a halfway house in Mansfield, Ohio, when
he walked away May 28 and disappeared with Watson and Haylee, said
Deputy U.S. Marshal Omar Castillo.
Watson is scheduled to appear in San Diego Superior Court
on Thursday morning on a fugitive warrant. She can either waive
extradition to Ohio or challenge it, which would require further
hearings.
Potter is in federal custody because he was on federal
parole at the time he walked away from the halfway house, Deputy
District Attorney Summer Stephan said. He could appear in federal court
as early as this afternoon, but the hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Haylee seemed to be in good spirits, although she appeared
to have suffered a possible mild case of chickenpox, Castillo said.
She will be handed over to her grandmother.

Carlin said Potter and Watson told him they had heard about the ranch from someone camping at a nearby beach with them.

“In retrospect they were obviously on the run looking for a place that was incognito,” he said.

Castillo said that the family had been staying at the ranch for about a
week, and that they may have visited the Wild Animal Park three days
ago, according to another tipster who called authorities.
U.S. marshals were offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Potter.

According to the ranch's Web site, about 70 people live at Morningstar.

Carlin said the number varies as people come and go.

“There are people here from every walk of life, and different cultural
and economic backgrounds, all serving the same God with the same faith,
in lasting friendships,” the Web site states.
“In this new life the barriers are being broken down. As
the long-established cultures of the Earth are being left behind for
the self-gratification of 'Western culture,' a brand new culture is
emerging. Our common faith has brought us together to accomplish our
Creator's work of restoration.”
Carlin said families and single people show up at the
ranch all the time. He said the ranch doesn't plan on changing the way
it does things and will continue to welcome strangers into the fold.
“We pray to be delivered from evil every day, and it's
obvious we were,” he said. “None of our children were harmed. There
were no criminal acts here.”
Carlin said that as a community the ranch wants to thank the Sheriff's Department for the way everything was handled.

“We're very thankful for the police and how . . . helpful they were to us and how much care they took not to cause harm.”

The mother of the
4-year-old girl who was the focus of a nationwide search until found in
Valley Center earlier this week, agreed Thursday to be returned to
Ohio, where she will likely face criminal charges.
Candace Watson, 24, and her boyfriend, wanted sex offender Robbie Potter, 27,
were found and arrested Tuesday in Valley Center, the Union-Tribune
reported.
Watson and Potter had been on the run for more than a month with Watson’s 4-year-old daughter, Haylee Donathan.
Potter, who was recently released from prison for sexual battery on a minor,
was living in a halfway house prior to the escape and was not allowed
to be around children.
According to the U.S. Marshals Service, Potter left a halfway house in Ohio and disappeared with Watson and Haylee, the Union-Tribune reported.
Watson, who remains in San Diego, was ordered to be held without bail until law officials from Ohio come to get her.
According to the Union-Tribune, federal officials said a warrant was issued
Thursday and that Watson would be charged in federal court with
harboring or concealing a fugitive.
Potter appeared in federal court Wednesday. A bail hearing is scheduled for Monday.
Deputy U.S. Marshal Omar Castillo told the Union-Tribune that Haylee appeared
to have a mild case of chickenpox, but was otherwise in good spirits.
He added that Haylee will be handed over to her grandmother.

MANSFIELD -- Haylee Donathan's grandmother has spoken to her by phone.

"I've been talking to her three or four times a day," Mary Watson said. "The
first day, she didn't seem too good. Since I've been talking to her
three or four times a day, she's been real good."Haylee,
4, is staying in San Diego at the Polinsky Children's Center, a 24-hour
facility for the temporary emergency shelter of children who must be
separated from their families for their own safety or when parents
cannot provide care. The facility includes six residential cottages, a
nursery, an on-site library, infirmary and gymnasium.Candace
Watson, Haylee's mother, and fugitive sex offender Robbi Potter, were
arrested June 23 at a Christian retreat center near San Diego, ending a
month-long nationwide manhunt for the couple and Haylee. Mary Watson
has been granted emergency custody. She doesn't know when Haylee, who
is being examined, will be able to come home."I'm trying
to get up some money to stay somewhere so I can be out there with her
until the paperwork gets done," Mary Watson said. "(The National Center
for Missing & Exploited Children) will pay for my way out. Now, I
just need money to stay out there."Potter, 27, waived a
hearing Monday. He is scheduled for a removal hearing at 9 a.m. July 9.
He was arrested on an Ohio warrant for a parole violation and on a
federal warrant for a probation violation.U.S. Marshal
Pete Elliott said Monday federal officials also are pursuing a charge
through the Adam Walsh Act. As a Tier III sex offender -- the most
serious designation -- Potter could not leave the area."I hope they do everything they can do to him," Mary Watson said.
Potter, who has convictions for sexual battery with 7- and 9-year-old victims,
walked away from a local halfway house May 28. Authorities believe
Watson gave him a ride, knowing he was on the run. She was arrested and
charged by the state with complicity to escape. Since then, Watson, 24,
also has been charged with harboring a federal fugitive.Last
week, Watson waived her extradition hearing on the state charge.
Elliott wasn't sure how the federal case would affect extradition.

Haylee Donathan, the missing 4-year-old who was discovered at a San Diego, Calif. Christian ranch on June 23, will be placed in foster care when she returns to Ohio.After Haylee disappeared
with her mother, Candace Watson, 24, and convicted sex offender Robbi
Potter, 27, on May 28, a nationwide manhunt ensued. Potter was
convicted and served time for two counts of sexual battery on children,
ages 7 and 9.Haylee has been at the Polinsky Children’s Center in San Diego
since she was found. The center is a 24-hour facility for the temporary
emergency housing of children who must be separated from their families
if their parents cannot care for them or for their own safety.Mary Watson, Haylee’s grandmother,
was given temporary emergency custody of the girl on June 19 to
facilitate the issuance of an Amber Alert—which ultimately helped find
Haylee. Nevertheless, Haylee will not be living with her
grandmother when she returns to Ohio. “She will be placed with a foster
family in order for her to be in a safe environment at this time,” said
Edith Gilliland, an attorney for Children Services.Attorneys
Charles Lynch and Heather Cockley provided free assistance to Mary
Watson so she could obtain emergency custody of Haylee. Cockley said,
“This case is sort of in two parts. The first part is the filing of the
emergency custody to get the Missing Child Alert. The second part is
determining what’s in the best interest of the child now that she’s
been found.”The Lancaster Eagle Gazette
reported that two of Mary Watson’s children have been in trouble with
the law. Candace Watson faces possible prison time for assisting
Potter’s escape from a halfway house and for harboring a fugitive. Her
brother Cyle Watson, is serving eight years in prison for a probation violation and has a prior conviction for the rape of a 12-year-old girl.

Haylee Donathan, the missing 4-year-old who was discovered at a San Diego, Calif. Christian ranch on June 23, has returned to Ohio.After
Haylee disappeared with her mother, Candace Watson, 24, and convicted
sex offender Robbi Potter, 27, on May 28, a nationwide manhunt ensued.

Potter was convicted and served time for two counts of sexual battery
on children, ages 7 and 9.Haylee’s father, James Donathan, is in jail charged with helping Potter escape a halfway house.Haylee was staying at the Polinsky Children’s Center in San Diego since she was found. Mary Watson, Haylee’s grandmother, was given temporary emergency custody of the girl on June 19 to facilitate the issuance of an Amber Alert—which ultimately helped find Haylee.On
Thursday, attorneys attended a hearing before Juvenile Court Judge Ron
Spon, who will ultimately determine if Haylee was neglected or abused
as alleged by Children Services.Children Services filed a
complaint against Haylee’s mother, father, and grandmother, but
attorneys for each party deny claims of abuse and neglect.Officials
at Children Services also requested there be no contact between Haylee
and her grandmother who had been speaking with her by phone three to
four times a day. Mary Watson’s attorney, Heather Cockley said, “We
haven’t had any visitation. The child is upset because she thinks that
her grandmother has stopped calling her.”Mary Watson was granted visitation, but only if it is supervised.Two
of Mary Watson’s children have been in trouble with the law. Candace
Watson faces possible prison time for assisting Potter’s escape from a
halfway house and for harboring a fugitive. Her brother Cyle Watson is serving eight years in prison for a probation violation and has a prior conviction for the rape of a 12-year-old girl.

The pretrial hearing for custody of Haylee Donathan has been
scheduled for Monday at 2:30 p.m. in Richland County Juvenile Court,
according to court administrator Michael A. Casto.Now in foster
care, the 4-year-old is the daughter of Candace Watson, 25, who was
indicted last week along with boyfriend Robbi Potter, 27, in connection
with an alleged escape from a local sex offender halfway house that led to a month-long, cross-county manhunt and national headlines.Judge
Ron Spon ordered the preadjudication hearing, with a trial to follow in
three weeks. He must determine if Haylee is dependent, neglected or
abused, as Richland County Children Services alleges in a complaint the
agency filed against the girl's mother and father as well as her
grandmother, Mary Watson, who disputes the claim."She is ready, willing and able to have this child in her home," Watson's attorney Heather Cockley said.James
Donathan, Haylee's father, is in Richland County Jail, accused of
helping Potter escape from the Mansfield Volunteers of America.

A convicted sex
offender who was the target of a nationwide manhunt in May and June has
been charged with a federal crime under the Adam Walsh Act.
Robbie Potter, 27, appeared in U.S. District Court in Youngstown
Thursday and was indicted under the act where the federal government
intervenes when a sex offender crosses state lines. Potter was in the
company of Haylee Donathan, 4, and her mother Candace Watson, 25, when
he fled from a Mansfield halfway house and was later captured near San
Diego, California.
If convicted, Potter faces up to 10 years in prison and also faces
an additional two years behind bars for a probation violation for a
2002 bank robbery in Tennessee. Potter also faces third-degree felony
counts of escape and failure to notify of a change of address, with
both charges carrying five-year prison terms.
Another hearing for Potter is set for 11 a.m., September 18 in federal court.

A trial is scheduled to determine who will win custody of Haylee Donathan.

The 4-year-old, living in foster care, is the daughter of Candace
Watson, 25. The Crestline woman was indicted two weeks ago along with
boyfriend Robbi Potter, 27, in connection with an alleged escape from a
local sex offender halfway house. That incident led to a month-long,
cross-country manhunt and national headlines. Haylee traveled with the
couple and was taken into protective custody in San Diego upon their capture in June.Watson was in Richland County Juvenile Court on Monday.Lawyers
representing Richland County Children Services and the family agreed to
another pretrial hearing to go over witness lists Sept. 8, and agreed
to trial dates of Sept. 10 and 11.Court administrator Michael
Casto said because several relatives had come forward to seek Haylee's
custody, the proceedings might become complicated."We want to get the consensus between the agency and the family," he said.Candace
Watson, Haylee's grandmother Mary Watson and at least one other
relative have submitted claims seeking custody to Judge Ron Spon. The
judge will determine if Haylee is dependent, neglected or abused, as
Richland County Children Services alleges in a complaint.James
Donathan, Haylee's father, is in Richland County Jail, accused of
helping Potter escape from the Mansfield Volunteers of America.

Haylee Donathan's father could be out of prison in nine months.
James Donathan, 24, whose last known address was 290 N. Main St.,
was sentenced Tuesday to three years in prison for complicity to escape
for his role in helping sex offender Robbi Potter flee a Volunteers of
America halfway house.Richland County Common Pleas Judge James DeWeese told Donathan he could apply for early release if he stayed out of trouble.Donathan
pleaded guilty Monday. He procured a telephone for Potter and acted as
lookout for a vehicle that was to help him escape.Potter's flight led to a monthlong, nationwide manhunt for him, Candace Watson and Watson's 4-year-old daughter, Haylee.Watson,
25, who has no listed address but previously lived in Crestline,
pleaded guilty Monday to complicity to escape. She could receive up to
five years in prison for the third-degree felony at her Oct. 19
sentencing. Watson has been in custody since June 23, when she and
Potter were arrested at a Christian retreat center near San Diego.Potter was previously convicted of two counts of sexual battery involving 7- and 9-year-old victims."I'm just ready to get this done and over with," Donathan told DeWeese, adding he hoped to reunite with his family.Donathan worked out a plea agreement Monday and was released on bond until sentencing."I think he's on the right track here," defense attorney James TyRee said.First Assistant Prosecutor Brent Robinson declined to address the court.Donathan,
wearing a T-shirt and sporting multiple tattoos on both arms, appeared
in court with his mother Connie and Mary Watson, Candace's mother.Connie Donathan told her son she loved him as an officer led him away in handcuffs.After the hearing, she disputed her son's involvement in Potter's escape."I
don't believe it was a deliberate act," Connie Donathan said. "He did
not knowingly have any knowledge that this was happening. It fell into
his lap when he opened his door."Donathan said she would support her son no matter what."That's
my baby. Love goes deep," Connie said. "Good, bad, right or wrong, he's
mine. Public opinion doesn't matter 'cause it's our family and we're
going to do whatever we can to keep it together."Connie Donathan
and Mary Watson predicted their children, who have dated off-and-on for
nine years, will get married despite Candace's previous relationship
with Potter.